Saturday, 28 December 2013

"Believe me, my time isn't up just yet"- That's how one of the epic autobiographies has just ended. Usain Bolt's autobiography named "Faster than Lightning" is another biography by a sportsman that I loved after Brett Lee's. While Brett Lee's was published by Random House, this one is published by none other than HarperCollins's print- Harper Sports. They have some amazing names in their autobiography section and I am happy that I picked up this book initially to start with. According to my memory, this is the 3rd book from HarperCollins that I have read and I have liked almost all of them till now. Surely, a publisher I will look forward every time I am ordering books online. More than authors, its time we start looking up at which publisher has published a specific book. Because authors can lose their form in one or two but publisher always maintain their quality. Even the publishing quality of HarperCollins is wonderful; their book can stay intact for years.

About the Book:-

Whether you know athletics or not and even whether you know sport or not, chances are you know Usain Bolt. The fastest man on the planet, not just now but ever, Usain has won the hearts of people everywhere with his mind-blowing performances and his infectious charisma uniting supporters around the world.

In this, his full autobiography, Usain tells his story in his own words: from humble beginnings in Jamaica, to international stardom at Beijing and on to the new heights of superstardom he has reached since lighting up London 2012. Full of the charm and charisma that has made him the most popular sporting figure of our time and a universal celebrity, this is a book that Usain's millions of fans will love.

About the Author:-

Usain Bolt is a Jamaican sprinter widely regarded as the fastest person ever. He is the first man to hold both the 100 metres and 200 metres world records since 1977. Along with his team-mates, he also set the world record in the 4 x 100 metres relay. He is the reigning Olympic champion in these three events, the first man to win 6 Olympic gold medals in sprinting and a five time World champion. He was the first to achieve a 'double double' by winning 100m and 200m titles at consecutive Olympics (2008 and 2012) and topped this through the first "double triple" (including 4x100m relays). His 2009 record breaking margin for 100 m, from 9.69 (his own previous world record) to 9.58, is the highest since records began.

Coming to the review, I must say that this has been one of the best autobiographies of all time. The best thing is that Usain didn't try to show that he is someone who sees his records as another number or time but he acknowledges each and every success that he has achieved. The way he has described each and every victory of his shows how much he is enjoying the grand success that he has achieved. He even clears in the 2nd half of the book that he doesn't know even the history of athletics down 1980s or even 90s. This honesty has worked out quite well with this novel. He even calls himself "Living Legend" and "Legend" most of the times which pissed me off because we know it buddy and that is why we are purchasing your book to know how you became a phenomenon in this sports and in Olympics but that's what shows the honesty he has shown while scripting his life.

The best part has been that Usain Bolt shows he's a normal arrogant guy and no born legend. He also keeps stating that he won his initial matches just on the raw talent and speed he had. It was only after his coach started pissing him off by asking to train regularly that he became physically and technically strong regarding the game. It has been fun reading about his initial successes. I also loved the way Bolt's father disciplined him and made him a down-to-earth man. After he loses one of the races, I loved the way he knocked his coach's door late night and asked him what was happening wrong with him. His narration and story-telling skill of breaking record and running 100 meters in just 9.72 seconds made me jump. His rivaly with 2-3 competitors at different levels is also wonderfully talked off. His high regards for Blake, the fellow Jamaican and later on, hating him for a moment is another beautiful part of this book. His love for his coach is also clearly visible in this book. He even stated that he initially raced for money it was later that he started doing it for himself and others.

Well, I should stop here or else I'll end up reviewing each and every sentence of the book because it's totally fun. I would give this book rating of 4.75 out of 5.